


A Box Full Of Problems

by JuliaDeVille



Category: Orphan Black (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Original Character(s), Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-07
Updated: 2015-06-22
Packaged: 2018-04-03 05:48:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 17
Words: 17,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4089262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JuliaDeVille/pseuds/JuliaDeVille
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Donnie burned a box he'd hidden from Alison. The box may be gone, but the problems are just beginning as Donnie's secrets are about to be exposed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Donnie Hendrix, formerly Donnie Chubbs, sat on top of a hill overlooking a quaint park in the suburbs just outside Toronto, Canada. He sat on the grass, forgoing the blanket in his trunk, despite the rain just a few days prior. 

Donnie’s dark but thinning hair blew softly in the breeze as it came down from the North. He wore a thin jacket over a t-shirt, a worn pair of jeans that came up above his bellybutton, and some white sneakers from a discount clothing store. Every part of his appearance screamed soccer dad on a budget. 

He sat there, holding a small wooden box with brass fittings in his hand. He looked at the box, tracing the outline with his fingers. He repeatedly opened the box, only to snap it shut without glancing at the contents within. 

A few feet away, an oil drum stood, rusting away. A fire raged inside, kicking up smoke from all the sticks and twigs added to the garbage accumulated over time. 

Donnie looked at the fire, then back at the box. He knew this was what needed to be done. He knew this was what needed to be done. It had to be destroyed and it had to be now. 

He took one last look at the box before taking a deep breath. He inhaled through his nose. The smoke filled his nostrils and his lungs. He exhaled. 

“It’s now or never,” he said, rising to his feet. He slowly ambled his way towards the barrel, looking around nervously for anyone watching him. 

When he felt the coast was clear, he opened the wooden box to reveal treasures from his past. 

A stack of love letters from a woman named Rebecca Lovewater. A lock of hair wrapped in yellow lace. A plastic ring from a supermarket vending machine. A series of photos of Donnie and Rebecca together at various locations. 

The photos were relatively recent based on Donnie’s hairline and girth. 

One-by-one, the items were viewed one last time before being cast into the flames. The hair was the first casualty. He tossed it in, which caused the fire to pop and sizzle. 

The smell of burnt hair began to permeate the air. Donnie coughed a few times as the breeze shifted, blowing the smoke directly into his face. 

Once he stopped coughing, he checked around to make sure his lungs had not escaped his chest during this ordeal. 

“Bad idea to start with the hair,” he said, spitting into the air. “Lesson learned.”   
He dropped the plastic ring in next. The plastic smoldered and melted. The toxic fumes mingled, danced, and merged with the burnt hair still taking up residence in the air. 

Donnie looked at the stack of letters, held together by a hair rubber band. He sniffed their perfumed pages one last time before tossing them into the fire. He instantly regretted the decision. He wanted nothing more than to read them one more time. 

That moment passed. 

He looked at each of the photographs one last time before tossing them into the fire. 

Together at Niagara Falls. Together outside a Maple Leafs game. Together at the airport by gate A14. 

Each one a reminder of a moment together in time. Each momento met its demise in the burning barrel. 

All of the artifacts from the box were gone. Donnie closed the box one last time, tossing it into the fire. 

Flames kissed the air, extending above the rim of the barrel as the aged, dried, stained wood began to burn. 

He watched as everything began to turn to ash. 

Once he was satisfied, he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a burner cell phone. He dialed the number. 

A female voice answered the other end. 

“It’s done,” Donnie said, confidently. “We’re done.” 

He ended the call before the reply came. He took one look at the phone then dropped it into the barrel too. 

Donnie walked away from the fire, content it would destroy all of the evidence. As far as he was concerned, everything was over from this point forward. 

He was cocksure that Alison would never know the truth.


	2. Chapter 2

“Hey honey,” Alison said as Donnie walked in through the back door. She was cutting orange slices on the counter next to a box of plastic baggies. “Hope you had a good day. I’m getting the orange slices ready for the kids soccer practice.” 

“Oh, yeah, that’s cool, Ali. I think I’m going to just stay here and get some rest.”

“I hope that isn’t code for watching those…” Alison lowered her voice to a whisper. “Movies.” 

“Ali, no. I told you, I won’t do that. I shouldn’t have done that. Besides, you took all of those and threw them out.” Donnie’s face turned red at the mention of the movies. He shook his hands vigorously in front of himself, trying to convince his loving wife that he wouldn’t engage his sexual side alone. 

Alison glared at him with her eyes squinted, debating whether to trust him. Her knife sliced through the orange with a sickening moistness that ended with a solid thunk as the knife struck the cutting board below. 

She pointed the knife at him as she spoke. “You’d better not mister. I won’t tolerate that type of hanky panky.”

“I know, Ali, I know. I said I was sorry. What more do you want from me?” he asked, half-sincere in his question. 

“Donnie, I don’t have time for your childish nonsense. The kids are going to be late if I don’t get these orange slices done. Go find something to do that’s out of the way.” She returned to slicing oranges into pieces. Every pass of the knife followed the same pattern. The wet followed by the thunk.

Wet. Thunk. Wet. Thunk. 

The pattern was broken only by the sounds of plastic bags squeaking as they were sealed shut. Once sealed, the bags were tossed on to the counter with a splash, only for the wet and the thunk to return. 

Donnie felt he needed to get out of the kitchen before he lost his lunch. His stomach was already tumbling like a gymnast after his time at the park. He thought he could handle dealing with Alison, particularly after she learned about his addiction to cheap pornographic movies, particularly the Big Boob Blowies series. 

He was wrong. Very, very wrong. 

He dashed up the stairs and into the bedroom he shared with Alison, despite their myriad of problems lately. He closed the door and pressed his back against it, exhaling as if he’s outrun a serial killer. 

He slid his hand up the door behind his back, fumbling for the round metal doorknob. One he’d found it, he flicked his thumb causing the tumbler to lock. Only after he felt confident he was alone did he step away from the door. 

He wasn’t three steps away when he heard two knocks at the door.

“Donnie? Donnie, open up. Now,” Alison said from outside the room. 

He broke into a cold sweat. He wasn’t sure how, but he felt, deep in his bones, that she knew what he’d done. He was certain he was busted and the long arm of marital law was coming for him. 

Donnie turned around, made three steps, and reached out towards the doorknob. His hand trembled and shook as it cut through the air towards. 

He fumbled with the lock.

“Hurry up Donnie. This isn’t funny,” she called from the other side of the door. 

His thumb squarely landed on the latch, which he turned with a quick flick. He turned the knob and pulled the door open. 

He saw his lovely wife standing just outside the door. Her pink vest, white turtleneck, and black yoga pants were soaked with water. 

“What happened?” he asked she pushed past him towards her closet. 

“The handle of the water cooler broke while I was trying to put the lid on it. It fell and spilled all over the kitchen. Now the kids are going to be late,” she said as she grabbed some dry clothes and disappeared into the bathroom. 

She closed the door behind herself as she continued to talk. “Can you take them? The orange slices are on the counter in a box. The water cooler is filled and secured.”

“Yeah. I mean, yeah, I can do that.” His breathing relaxed slightly.

“Thank you.”

Donnie walked out of the bedroom and was about to close the bedroom door when Alison poked her head out of the bathroom.

“Oh, and Donnie?”

“Yeah?”

“When you get home, we’re going to talk about that box I saw in the garage. Okay? Thanks.” 

She disappeared back into the bathroom. The sound of the door locking echoed through the bedroom. 

Donnie couldn’t hear it over the sound of his heart racing anew. He swallowed despite his mouth feeling dry. 

A million thoughts raced through his mind as he gathered up the kids and the snacks for soccer practice. 

He was not looking forward to returning home.


	3. Chapter 3

With Donnie and the kids out of the house, Alison took advantage of prime snooping time. She rummaged through all of Donnie’s favorite hiding spots, but found nothing out of the ordinary. 

It appeared that Donnie was being honest when he said that he was putting his pornography collection in the past. 

Alison was slightly disappointed that she didn’t catch him in the act. A bigger piece of her felt warm and fuzzy that Donnie cared so much about their relationship to give up something he enjoyed. 

However disgusting it was. 

She made her way out to the garage and continued searching. Her first stop was the nook where Donnie’s brown wooden box had resided. 

Has. Past tense. 

It wasn’t there when she looked for it. It had disappeared since she’d found it recently.

On her hands and knees, she looked around to see if it had moved, but couldn’t find it. She did find the dust outline on the shelf where the box used to be stored. 

“That lying sack of doodie,” she said, tossing her hands on her hips after an hour of searching. “He is in big trouble when I see him.” 

She stewed as she paced around the garage. She continuously acted out how the conversation would go when she finally confronted him about the box and its contents. She would make Donnie come clean about that box, if it was the last thing he ever did. 

She paced, back and forth, until her feet hurt. When she felt calmed down enough, she walked into the house where she heard her cell phone ringing. 

She dashed to find that her sister, Sarah Manning, was calling. Sarah was the most recent of Alison’s secret group with Cosima Niehaus called “Clone Club.” The three women appeared identical, minus some cosmetic differences such as hair or piercings. 

They were identical because they were, in fact, clones. 

“Sarah, I’m so sorry. I was… dealing with something,” she said as she answered her phone. 

“Alison, thank goodness. I need to come over. I need to grab something.” 

Alison looked at her watch. Donnie and the kids should be home within an hour. 

“You’ll have to be quick. The family will be home in an hour. Otherwise, you’ll have to wait until after 9 when the kids are in bed.

“Are you going to tell me what it is your need?”

“No. Not over the phone. I’ll see you in a bit. Felix will be with me.” 

“Okay,” Alison said as the phone went dead. 

Company was coming. She’d have to tidy up her house. Couldn’t have people see the mess that happens when people live in a space. Even if it was only Sarah and Felix coming over. 

Alison put aside her Donnie frustration and dove right in to getting her home in pristine condition. 

She fluffed the pillows on the couch. She wiped down the countertops, again. She took out the garbage, even though the bag was only half-full. She was in the process of scrubbing the downstairs toilet when she heard a knock as the back door.

She came out, taking off her rubber gloves, and saw Sarah standing at the door. Felix was with her, looking around. 

Alison opened the door with a polite, though forced, smile. “Hello Sarah, Felix. Please, won’t you come in?”

Sarah made her way into the house, stopping a few feet past the door. Felix slipped in as well, staying near his sister. 

“What can I do for you?” she asked as the gracious hostess. 

“I need to know everything you know about Beth Childs. No joke, Alison. This is serious. The cops, they’re starting to catch on that I’m not acting normal in their eyes. That psychopath is still trying to kill me. I saw her two nights ago, but she got away again.” 

“Oh my. She didn’t follow you here, did she?” Alison asked, hand to her chest. 

“Gawd no,” Felix said. “Sarah drives like a maniac. If anyone was following her, they’d have stood out from the rest of the traffic.” 

“Whew,” she said, relaxing a bit. 

“Is there anything you can tell me that could help me? I’m trying to stay in character, but I only had a few pieces of information in her sterilized home to go off of. This is serious now. These are the bloody cops.”

Alison shook her head. “Not really, Sarah. I only met her a few times. She taught me how to shoot a gun for protection. She talked to me about her research into other clones. I have a box of a few documents that she gave me, all in her own handwriting, but I don’t know if they will be of much use. I couldn’t figure out what to do with them.”

“Where’s the box?” Sarah asked. 

“Downstairs. Follow me,” Alison said. She began leading the way towards the basement when she heard the front door close. 

“Ali, we’re home,” Donnie’s voice called out.

“Okay,” she called back. “I’ll be right there.”

“Shit,” Sarah whispered. 

“Quick, in here. The box is on the top shelf,” Alison said, shoving Sarah and Felix into a small closet filled with winter clothes, ski boots, and other miscellaneous cold weather items. 

She had barely closed the door when Donnie came down the stairs. She turned and pressed her back against the door. 

“Hi Donnie,” she said, trying to fight her nervousness. 

“I’m going to grab a shower,” he said. 

“Okay,” she nodded as he turned and walked away. “Whew,” she whispered to herself as Donnie disappeared out of sight.


	4. Chapter 4

There was a knock at the oak front door. Alison jumped, crashing her backside into the closet door. Sarah and Felix felt the brunt as the door resonated loudly through the closet.

"I got it," Donnie said, walking around in his yellowed underpants. 

Alison would have been deeply embarrassed had she seen this display.

Donnie flung the door open. As the door moved, he said, "Can I help... you?"

His voice trailed off at the end of his inquiry when his eyes showed a lovely young woman standing there in a tight black T-shirt and jeans. He long red hair cascaded down to her ample breasts. Green eyes pierced out from thick framed glasses. 

A sweet smile crossed her lips. 

"Hello Donnie," she said, blushing slightly at the mention of his name. 

"What are you doing here?" He asked in a panic. "My kids are here. My wife is here."

He put extra emphasis on the fact that Alison was home. 

She twisted her foot back and forth on her toes. She looked at Donnie’s feet adorned in dirty white tube socks. 

“We need to talk, Donnie. I can’t let that call be the end. I can’t. I won’t.

“Nice undies,” she said, looking up from the ground.

Donnie darted behind the door, trying to hide from her gaze. “I said all that needed to be said. We’re done. You can’t be here. You can never be here. This is my home. This is where my family lives.”

He tried to close the door, shutting her out. She placed her foot just inside the door jam, preventing him from closing the door entirely. He pressed on the door, trying to get her to pull her black sneaker out of the doorway, but not enough to actually harm her. 

She didn’t flinch. 

“I know this is your home, Donnie, but we need to talk.”

“No, we don’t. We’re done, Rebecca. Finished. Don’t come back.” 

He thrust his entire weight upon the door, finally forcing her foot free. She moved her foot from danger as the door slammed in her face. 

“This isn’t over, Donnie. Do you hear me? This isn’t over,” she screamed from outside. Donnie secured all of the locks on the door, then put his weight up against the door to keep it from coming open. 

Downstairs, Alison had her own issues to worry about. Sarah and Felix, free from the closet, had retrieved the box Alison had mentioned. She took the duo into her sewing room and closed the door behind them. She couldn’t hear Donnie upstairs, talking with Rebecca when she first came to the door. 

“What is all this stuff?” Felix asked as he began pulling items from the box. 

“Various things that Beth gave me or that she left here.” 

“I don’t think a dirty hairbrush is going to help me much, Alison,” Sarah said looking at the remnants of what once was a pristine horse hair brush. 

“She said that belonged to one of the others. She was keeping it for the hairs to do DNA testing at the station, but she never could sneak it into the DNA lab without a reason.” 

“What about these?” Felix asked, holding up a pair of fuzzy handcuffs. 

Alison’s face turned beet red. “Those are… something that she gave me. A gag gift to try and jazz up my marriage. I had told her about a cold spell Donnie and I had been in. He seemed distant and disinterested in me. Beth thought those would… make him want some adult fun times.”

“Jesus, Alison, it’s sex. It’s bloody sex. Shagging. Banging. Humping. “

“That’s enough, that’s enough, “ Alison said, raising her hand up towards Sarah’s face. “I get the point.” 

“Or maybe you’re not and that’s the problem,” Felix added. 

“Can we please talk about Beth and not about my love life? Thank you.” 

“Okay, okay, sheesh. Some people,” Felix said, rummaging through the box some more. 

“There’s nothing but junk in here. There isn’t anything that can help me out.” 

“This is all I’ve got since she killed herself.”

Sarah stepped back until she was against the wall. She leaned back, folding her arms across her chest. She stared at the Beth Box and let the frustration sink in. 

“I’m going to get kicked off the force or put in jail or committed to a mental ward if I cannot figure out how to be more like Beth. Art is already convinced that I’m not Beth. The charade is ending, but we need to be inside that police department to find out what happened to her.”

“I’m sorry, Sarah. I really am. This is all I’ve got. I can tell you all I can recall about her, but honestly, I don’t think that would be anything more than I already shared with you or that you already know. I wish there was something useful in here.”

“What this?” Felix asked. He held up a small linen pouch cinched together using a piece of ribbon. 

“I don’t know,” Alison said, looking at the tiny piece of turquoise fabric. “I honestly don’t remember having ever seen that before.”

“It was in the box with everything else.” Felix handed the pouch over to Alison. 

She slowly pulled the sides of the pouch, slowly letting the ribbon slide along the sides. She opened up the pouch as wide as it would go, then turned the pouch upside down.

The contents fell out and landed in her palm. 

A diamond ring.

Etched inside was a name. 

Rebecca Lovewater. 

“Who the hell is Rebecca Lovewater?” Sarah asked.


	5. Chapter 5

Sarah and Felix had left hours ago. They left with the box of belongings hoping that maybe something could help Sarah maintain her cover as she assumed Beth’s life. She couldn’t risk being caught and ending up in jail. That would make her an easier target for the blonde woman hunting clones. 

Alison had finished her chores around the house, including all of the laundry, the dishes, and mending Donnie’s pants for the eighth time. She wasn’t sure there if those britches could take another mending. She was already having trouble getting the frailing fabric to take a stitch. 

The children were long since asleep, having gone to bed just after 7:30 P.M. Now was the time to have a civil discussion with Donnie. 

Always a civil discussion, never an argument. Arguments were for other families. Arguments happened in other neighborhoods. 

She walked up the stairs to find Donnie already in bed reading a book. A pair of small, rectangular spectacles sat on the tip of his nose. The book was the latest work from Danielle Steele. 

He quickly sat up in bed, tossing the book and glasses into the nightstand to his right. “Ali, I was just reading.”

“Donnie, I already know you read that smut. I’m the one who does the cleaning around here. You can’t hide everything from me forever.” 

His heart began to race. The color drained from his face. He felt trapped already and the conversation hadn’t even begun yet. 

“I’m not hiding anything from you,” he said. He voice coming through broken and dry, as if all the moisture in his mouth was swallowed. 

“Where’s the box?”

“What box?”

“The wood box that was out in the garage. I found it the same day I found your movie collection. The movies are gone, thank goodness. We have kids, Donnie. You can’t be having stuff like that in this house. 

“But that box, it’s gone too. What was in the box, Donnie?”

Donnie had two options. He could come clean about the box and tell Alison the truth, or he could travel down a path filled with lies, deceit, and denial.   
Donnie chose option two. 

“What box?” he repeated.

“Donnie Francis Chubbs Hendrix,” she said, folding her arms across her chest. Her left hip popped out, emphasising her posture. “You know exactly what box I am referring to. It was there last week. It’s gone this week. Where did it go?” 

“Ali, sweetie, honey, I swear to you, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

He was as convincing as a four-dollar bill with Oprah’s face on it. 

Alison glared at him as he sat in the bed. He slid further down beneath the covers. His posture made it clear to Alison that he was hiding something. 

She took a stab in the dark. 

“Who’s Rebecca Lovewater?”

Donnie’s eyes grew into dinner plates. The covers moved closer towards his face as he slid even further under the covers. 

“I don’t know,” he said, meekly. 

“I found a ring today with her name on it. Was in a box of miscellaneous items my friend gave me before she left. I don’t remember her saying anything about anyone named Rebecca.”

“Maybe it’s a relative of hers, or her grandmother. People always forget the names of their grandparents.”

She shrugged. “Maybe. It’s just weird that she’d have left a ring with me if it was so important.”

“Could have been a symbolic gesture of how much your friendship means to her. Like a friendship ring like when we were back in high school. Remember how you had one with Misty Chambers? Remember how she used to say she would marry you if she could?”

“She’s a happily married lesbian now.”

“Seriously?”

“Yup. Married to Amanda Collinsworth. Remember her?”

“The girl that used to eat paste in middle school?”

“That’s her. Apparently, it was just a phase. They own a cute bed and breakfast out in St. Johns by the bay. Rated very highly on Trip Advisor.”

“Wow. The crazy things that happen in this world when you’re not looking,” Donnie said. 

“Yup. Crazy things when you’re not looking. Crazy crazy things.” She grabbed her pajamas from her dresser, dashed into the bathroom, and prepared for bed. 

When she emerged in her baby blue and black flannel pajamas, Donnie was asleep. She could hear him snoring from across the bedroom. 

She shook her head, turned the light off, and crawled into bed. 

Tomorrow she would start trying to figure out who Rebecca Lovewater is and how she’s connected to Beth and Clone Club.


	6. Chapter 6

Alison sat in her living room with her laptop computer open in her lap. She logged into Skype and pushed the button to call Cosima Niehaus. 

Within seconds, the smiling face curtained by thick dreads appeared on the screen. 

“Hey good lookin’, whatcha got cookin’?” Cosima said before taking a hit off a joint between hot pink tweezer. 

“Are those my tweezers? I’ve been looking for those,” Alison said. 

“Yeah, sorry. Lost my roach clip and these were by the sink when I was in your bathroom. Must have just bic’ed them after…”

“You were getting high in my bathroom?” Alison screamed loud enough that her words echoed off the walls. “How could you do something so foolish?”

“Oh relax, sheesh. No one got hurt. No harm, no foul. Besides, what do you want anyway?” 

Alison regained her composure. “Right, of course. I need your help. I found a ring in a box of Beth’s belongings. It has the name Rebecca Lovewater engraved in the bad. I need you to help me find out who she is and how she’s connected to Beth.”

“No sweat. Might take me a day or two. Have some other things going on here, but I’ll try and get you an answer.”

“Thanks, Cosima. And you can keep the tweezers.”

“Right on,” Cosima said before the screen went blank. She took another hit of her joint and fired up a software program she’d found that compiles public records into one place without having to pay a third-party information collector. It was the same software program the police used to do background checks on prospective new officers as well as suspects of crimes. 

She typed in Rebecca Lovewater and hit enter. After a minute, the system displayed over a thousand results for persons with that name. She toggled the filter settings to narrow it down to the Toronto and Buffalo areas, as well as the surrounding boroughs and townships. 

The system returned 103 persons with that name in the local area. With the information Alison provided, there wasn’t much for Cosima to work with. 

She narrowed the scope to within three miles of Beth’s home. The system returned six results. A few keystrokes later, she had access to their driver’s license photos. 

Three of the women were dead, narrowing the list down to three people. The remaining people didn’t seem likely to be in Beth’s inner circle. Two were in their late 80s and living in retirement communities a mile apart. The third was a teenager who had just graduated from high school a few months prior. 

She continued running different filter settings trying to find anyone who might have been connected to Beth in any way. She searched people who had criminal records. She searched people who had worked in law enforcements, as lawyers, as bail bondsmen, as bounty hunters. She searched for people who may have attended the same college as Beth. 

None of her searches returned anything of value. In fact, it became more of a mystery who this woman was and why Beth would have her ring. 

Just the latest of Beth-related mysteries that turned up since Sarah assumed Beth’s life following Beth’s suicide. 

Cosima checked her watch and realized she was going to be late for class if she didn’t leave right now. She grabbed her books and her laptop and departed. She decided she would contact Alison afterwards to give her the news.

Or rather, the lack of news. 

She dashed out the door to make her way to class. 

All the while, Alison paced around her house, trying to remember every word Beth spoke. She wanted to remember if Beth ever, even in a casual comment, mentioned anyone named Rebecca. 

No matter how much she tried, she couldn’t remember any conversation where the name Rebecca was ever mentioned. Not even as a suspect in a crime. Just the name Rebecca had never come up. 

The ring was a mystery to her. She hoped that Cosima was having better luck.


	7. Chapter 7

Donnie was just finishing up eating his peanut butter and jelly sandwich at his desk when his phone rang. 

“Donnie Hendrix,” he said, trying to swallow the last pieces of sandwich. 

“We need to talk. Meet me at six o’clock at Julio’s, or I’ll show up at your house again. This time, just as your wife is leaving to carpool the kids to school. Understood?”

Donnie nodded, even though she couldn’t see him. “Yes. I’ll be there.” 

“Good.” The line went dead after she finished the conversation. 

Donnie tried not to panic. He tried to remain calm. Somehow, Rebecca had found his work number. Even Alison didn’t have his direct number. She had to call in to the receptionist and be routed to Donnie. 

This was serious. This was far more serious than he had ever anticipated when he first started his relationship with her two years ago. He knew it was wrong, cheating on Alison with her, but he thought it was just a fling. He thought it would just be good fun and that he could hide it from Alison.

He’d been able to hide the truth all this time. He thought he could end it without Alison having ever found out. 

Now it seemed that he would either have to continue his affair with Rebecca indefinitely or tell Alison the truth. In both scenarios, Donnie risked losing Alison. 

He knew the risks when he started, but he always thought he could avoid her finding out. Now she was getting closer than ever. 

Asking questions about a keepsake box he’d had since college but only started using after he met Rebecca. 

Then Alison found that ring in the house. Rebecca had given him the ring to surprise her with. She wanted to pretend she was Mrs. Donnie Hendrix and wanted a ring to go with the rouse. She picked it out and paid for it herself. 

Donnie was looking at it when Alison startled him. He tossed it in the first box he found and forgot about it over time. Rebecca never brought it up, expecting him to propose at some point in the future. 

That the ring looked very similar to Alison’s own ring was just a coincidence. At least, Donnie hoped it was a coincidence.   
The afternoon passed slowly as he checked the clock repeatedly. Every few minutes, he would look up from his email or from his Word documents and check the clock on the wall. 

His coworkers would have thought something was wrong, if Donnie wasn’t the weird guy in the office. He was the guy who worked his own way and sometimes would zone out for long periods of time. It was by the grace of being very good at his job that Donnie hadn’t been fired for his disorganized and chaotic ways around the office. 

Five o’clock finally came around and the office began to empty as co-workers left for happy hours and the commute home. Donnie stayed in his seat, dreading what would happen in an hour. He was not looking forward to seeing Rebecca again. 

He broke down sobbing at his desk. His heart was breaking with how stupid and selfish he’d been. He thought about how much all of this would crush Alison and how fast she’d file for divorce. He thought about never seeing his kids again as he’d always be labeled as an adulterer. 

He delayed leaving until the last minute possible. He wanted to just run home and hide under the blankets. He would rather have been at the dentist having a root canal than driving down the way to Julio’s. 

And yet, here he was, sitting at a table near the bar at Julio’s, drinking a ginger ale with a lime wedge. His hands shook as they framed the sweating glass of soft drink. 

“I knew you’d come see me,” Rebecca said, taking a seat across from Donnie. “See, you just can’t resist me.”

“I’m just here to keep you away from my wife and kids.”

“Of course. I don’t want to have to pay another visit to suburbia if I don’t have to. It’s all up to you, Donnie. Don’t make me have to go back to your house and risk seeing your lovely wife and your adorable children. That would break my heart.” 

“Are you blackmailing me?” 

Rebecca leaned forward, looking Donnie in the eyes. “I’m not doing anything of the sort, Donnie. I’m just offering you a friendly suggestion.” 

“It doesn’t sound very friendly,” he said, taking a sip from his ginger ale in an effort to settle his upset stomach. 

“Well, let’s get back to a friendlier place,” she said, placing her hand on Donnie’s knee. 

He jumped in his seat, crashing his legs into the tabletop above. His ginger ale almost spilled from the impact.

Other patrons of Julio’s turned to see what the source of the commotion was. 

“Sorry, sorry,” he said, raising his hand in the air apologetically. “I thought I saw a spider. Turned out it was just a reflection from a wrist watch. My bad.” 

That seemed to satisfy the gathered patrons, as they all returned to their conversations and beverages. 

“I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but we cannot do this any more. I have to think about my wife, my kids, my family. I just can’t live my life with you in it anymore.” 

“You didn’t seem to have a problem living your life with me in it before. Something’s changed. Something is different about you, Donnie. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but you’re not the same man you were the last time I saw you.

“When I saw all of you,” she said with a wink. 

“You’re right. Something has changed and I’m not the same man you saw last. I realized how important my kids are to me. I realized how much my wife loves me. I realized that I would do anything to be with her and to make her happy. 

“That means no longer being with you. That’s why I called. That’s why I ended it.”

“You ended nothing,” she said as she placed her left index and middle finger into his glass. She pulled out an ice cube then rubbed it over her lips a few times before placing it in her mouth. 

Donnie tried to resist her charm and wiles. He kept thinking about Alison and the kids. He kept thinking about how important his family was to him and how this could destroy everything he’d spent his entire life building and cultivating. 

“You’re wrong. This is over. I’m done with you, with this. I’m moving on, without you. You’ll just have to deal with that. I won’t let you threaten me or blackmail me over this.”

“You’ll never tell Alison the truth. You’ll never tell her how you’ve been coming over to my house after work, putting in a few hours of hard labor in my bedroom. You’ll never come clean about how you cleaned all of the surfaces of my house by making them so very dirty.”

“We’re done,” Donnie said, pulling out his wallet and throwing down five dollars on the table. “I’m going home to my wife.” 

“You’re making a mistake,” she said, standing up. She pushed his shoulders down to keep him seated in his chair. “I’m going to go. I’ll let you think about what you really want to do. Decide what’s important and let me know. Think carefully because make no mistake, I will tell your wife everything. And I mean, everything.” She whispered “everything” in his ear, making sure her warm breath dribbled down the back of his neck. 

With that, Rebecca left the bar. Donnie sat there, stunned at what happened. 

A young bartender came over to Donnie’s table. 

“You must be rich,” he said, watching Rebecca walk away down the sidewalk. 

“What makes you think that?”

“There’s no way a hot piece of ass like that would be into a guy like you unless there’s money involved.” 

“Go to hell,” Donnie said as he took the five bucks off the table. He shoved it into his pocket and left the bar.

He gave the bartender a one-finger salute as a parting shot as he, too, left the bar.


	8. Chapter 8

“Sorry Alison. I just can’t find anything that makes sense with just the name. There’s over a thousand hits. Over a hundred in this metro area. The ones that I can connect to anything remotely close to Beth just don’t seem like they’d have crossed paths or been close in any way,” Cosima said, sitting on her bed. 

She could see Alison’s frown over Skype. Alison shook her head a few times, her arms crossed over her chest. 

“I know it wasn’t much to go on. I didn’t expect there to be so many people named Rebecca Lovewater. For some reason, it didn’t seem like it would be a common name.” 

“We’re just going to have to find something else to narrow it down. There’s just not much to go off of, even using all this sophisticated software.” 

“I’ve spent all day trying to figure out anything that Beth may have said, but I swear to you, as best I can recall, she never said the name Rebecca in any capacity. Not once.” 

Cosima moved from sitting to laying on her bed. She smiled towards the camera as she settled into her new position. 

“We’ll figure it out. There’s something out there that will tell us who this woman is. We just have to do a little more digging into Beth’s life to figure it out.” 

Alison nodded. “Maybe Sarah found something at Beth’s place that can help us out.” 

“Just let me know. I gotta jet,” Cosima said as she prepared to close her laptop for the night. 

“Absolutely. Thank you Cosima.”

“No problem. Laters.” 

The Skype call ended. Alison was disappointed that Cosima had not returned anything. She knew it was a longshot to find anything, but the disappointment was real. 

She checked the clock, seeing the Donnie was over two hours late home from work. He hadn’t even bothered to call her with another one of his lame excuses. Excuses like “I got stuck in the printer,” “I got lost on the way home because the road was closed,” and Alison’s personal favorite “All these houses look the same.” 

She closed her laptop and walked into the kitchen. She had the house to herself since the kids were spending the night with her mother. Alison used her freedom to have a glass of wine and some fancy chocolates she’d hidden in the back of the cabinet. 

She took a seat in the living room where she sipped her wine, ate her chocolate, and read US Magazine. She even put her feet up on the table, an act she often scolded Donnie and the children about. 

She was halfway through an article about Brad and Angelina adopting another group of children from Africa when Donnie walked in the front door. She quickly dropped her feet to the floor and closed her box of chocolates. 

“Hello honey,” she said as he walked into the living room. 

“Hi dear,” he said as he leaned over and kissed her cheek. 

“There is green bean casserole in the oven, some mashed potatoes and gravy on the stove, and some roast beef resting on the counter for supper. Go get cleaned up and we can eat.” 

“Yes ma’am,” he said. He made his way up the stairs and into his bedroom. He quickly changed his clothes and washed up his face. He made sure that all of his dirty clothes found their way to the hamper, else he’d face the wrath of Alison Hendrix. 

He was already dealing with enough problems in his life. He didn’t need a civil discussion about dirty socks on the floor. Again. 

He stared at his face in the mirror as he splashed his cheeks and forehead with water from the running faucet. He tried to forget about what happened earlier. He tried to figure out what he should do with the entire situation. 

He wanted to cry, but couldn’t bring himself to do so. 

He wiped his face dry with his towel then hung it back up to Alison’s exacting standards. Then he emerged from the bedroom and made his way to the dining room. 

He found the table prepared for a meal together. Alison had set the table, put food on the plates, poured them both a glass of wine. She even put two candleholders on the table with long white stick candles. 

The candles were not lit. That would be a waste of two decorative candles. 

“Everything looks and smells great,” he said as he sat down at the table.

Alison smiled from the head of the table where she sat. “Thank you, Donnie. I appreciate that.” She loaded her fork with some mashed potatoes. “How was your day?” 

“My day? The usual. Nothing happened out of the ordinary at all. Not a thing. Nope, just a normal day at the office. Normal, boring, regular day at the office.” 

“Then why are you over two hours late, Donnie? The meat is cold. The potatoes are cold. The casserole is lukewarm.” She took a bite of the lukewarm casserole, waiting for Donnie to reply. 

“I went out after work. Grabbed a ginger ale at the bar. Just lost track of time.”

“We have ginger ale here, Donnie. You didn’t have to go out to a bar for a soft drink.”

Donnie looked down at his plate of food. “I’m sorry. I forgot. I just had some things on my mind and wasn’t thinking clearly.” 

“What sorts of things were on your mind? Perhaps talking about them with me will help you deal with them?”

He shook his head. “No, no. I can’t ask you to do that.”

“That’s my job as your wife. To help you when you’re in need. It was in our vows. Now, tell me about some of the things rolling around your brain that are keeping you out late.” 

She placed her elbows on the table, folding her hands into a shelf. She placed her chin on her hands so that her head was supported above the table while her palms faced down. 

She wasn’t going to take “no” for an answer. 

“Well, you see, the thing is,” he said, trying to think of something to tell her that wouldn’t reveal his secret. “Well, Harris at work, he’s been stealing my lunch from my desk. I run off to the bathroom, come back, and my pb and j is gone. That’s what I was thinking about.” 

As far as Donnie lies go, this was one of the better ones. 

“Well, that’s not very nice of him. If he’s going to be a stinky thief, you can do something to prove it was him stealing your lunch. Make your sandwich with a lot of hot sauce on it. Maybe create a fake lunch with a sandwich filled with black pen ink that stains his face.”

“That’s actually brilliant. Then he can’t deny that he’s the one who stole my lunch. I’ll do that in the morning.”

“Don’t worry about it, honey. I’ll make your lunch for you.” 

“That’s okay, really. I can make my own lunch.”

“No, no. I insist. I can make a sandwich that will have his mouth burning for days. Don’t you worry a hair on your head,” she said, sliding a fork full of roast beef in her mouth. 

“Thanks,” Donnie said as he continued eating his dinner. His lie seemed to work in fooling Alison. 

Perhaps it worked too well as Donnie realized he would be unable to eat his lunch tomorrow because of Alison’s fire ball. 

Small price to pay, he told himself. Small price to pay.


	9. Chapter 9

Helena sat on a mattress tucked away inside an access tunnel beneath a warehouse in the northern part of Toronto. The small room had two dirty windows which allowed some light to come in from above. The filth obscured anyone trying to view inside the long deserted space. 

This was just one of the dozens of hideaways she'd been provided by Thomas. This one had quickly become her favorite because of its proximity to a Denny's. There were ample amounts of food available from the dumpster out back. 

It was also the hideaway where she felt the safest from the world around her. This one Thomas never visited, so she could relax for the first time in her life. 

She had decorated these walls with various pictures from magazines that she found pretty. A guy in a Stetson hat with his shirt off. A smiling pair of kids for a toothpaste ad. A dog fetching a ball. A house with a garden and a tree swing. 

Despite her decorations, Helena spent her time cleaning her sniper rifle and her handgun. She took them apart over and over again, meticulously cleaning each piece, the reassembling them. She cleaned them several times until the sun had set and her last glimmers of light disappeared. 

She was alone in a dark room beneath an abandoned warehouse. Alone and unloved. Her heart ached to be free and to live amongst the people strolling through the mall and commuting to and fro. 

At night, she would sneak out of her den, and travel to downtown on her motorcycle so she could watch people go to the local bars and nightclubs. Everyone looked so happy and like they were having so much fun.

Helena wanted that in her life. She wanted some fun and excitement. She wanted to travel and make friends. She wanted a family built on love, not blind obedience. 

She wanted it, but had no idea how she could ever achieve it. 

Instead, she settled to live vicariously. 

Tonight was another night of people watching. If Thomas knew, her life would be in jeopardy, so she stuck to the shadows. 

In one of the alleyways there was a fire escape affixed to the outside of a worn and weathered building. The fire escape was rusted and unstable. Caution tape danced with warnings to keep out. 

Helena paid them no mind. She was going to the roof no matter what some tape and a few signs told her. She slipped over the few links of chain holding the flimsy metal sign, then snaked her way through the faded yellow-and-black plastic tape cascading from the railing. 

The stairs shook as she made each movement. They groaned and wailed at her weight being pressed upon them. Small bits of cement broke free from the bolts holding them in place as they tried to fall away from their conjoined partner. 

Helena raced up the stairs with a reckless abandon. She didn’t slow down when the entire structure lurched several inches forward before returning to its original location along the wall. She was on a mission to reach the roof of the building so she could see her favorite program known as The Really Real World, starring everyone. 

When she finally reached the top, she looked down at the rickety old fire escape that led her up to the roof. It rocked and swayed as it dealt with the aftermath of her scaling it. She shrugged, hoping it would still be there when it became time to leave. Else she’d have to do it the hard way. 

She hated the hard way. 

Helena walked to the front edge of the roof and climbed up on the two-foot thick concrete retaining wall. She sat, legs folded, and watched the people walk to and fro from four-and-a-half stories up in the air. The people on the street were entirely unaware of her presence above them. 

She watched them come and go. She watched as they talked, as they flirted, as they drank, as they thought no one could see them. These people living these lives of freedom without someone telling them not to do everything. 

She watched as the number of people out began to dwindle. The crowds began to disperse. Bars were shutting their doors for the night. She watched as people piled into cabs and left. 

From her perch above, she saw two people step out of a bar and on to the street. They walked past, talking very animatedly about something. She couldn’t make out the exact words over the other people leaving for the night, but she could recognize the face. 

Sarah Manning. 

She didn’t recognize the guy her. A boyfriend perhaps. A regular friend? It didn’t matter. He was not important. 

Helena’s orders were specific. Kill anyone who is an abomination. If they looked like Helena, they must die for she was the original. 

Helena watched as Sarah walked down the sidewalk, talking the night away. She knew she had to make her move. She dashed up from her makeshift chair and darted towards the stairs. She moved as fast as she could, but the stairs put up a fight. They wobbled. They groaned. They began to fall further and further away from the building. 

Twice the stairs felt like they were about to rip away from the building entirely, and permanently. 

Still, Helena tried to run down them as fast as she could. She ran through the caution tape, snapping it with ease. She tried to hurdle over the chained sign, but her right foot caught it, causing her to tumble to the ground. 

She slide on her face, hands, and chest for several feet. Blood began to ooze from the wounds. She was consumed with a burning sensation. Her wound from being impaled by Sarah previously became reopened. All of the stitches popped, forcing more blood on to Helena’s clothes. 

She staggered and fought off the pain as much as she could. She knew that she couldn’t allow Sarah to get away. No again. 

When Helena finally made her way to the sidewalk, the once packed space now becoming vacant and desolate. The brights lights would soon flicker off and, for at least a few hours, darkness could call this space home. 

Helena was no longer concerned with the bar patrons. She was concerned with that fact that she’d just seen her target. She needed to find Sarah, to follow her, to learn where she is going. 

She looked down the sidewalk, running in the direction Sarah was heading. 

It was no use. Sarah Manning had escaped. 

Again.


	10. Chapter 10

Donnie shot out of bed at the sound of the Sugar Hill Gang singing Apache. 

“Tonto, jump on it, jump on it, jump on it...  
Kemosabi, jump on it, jump on it, jump on it...  
Custer, jump on it, jump on it, jump on it...  
Apache, jump on it, jump on it, wowowowowowowowowo!!  
A-hunga-hunga-hunga-hunga” ** 

It took him a moment to realize it was the sound of his phone ringing. He reached towards the nightstand and the ringing cell phone. His hands fumbled as he tried to grab the device, inadvertently pushing the phone further away. 

It wouldn’t ordinarily be a problem to have a ringing cell phone by the bed. But people don’t ordinarily call him just after 2 am. He reached as far as he could with his eyes still adjusting to being open. 

Alison stirred beside him. He could hear her groan a little and roll over. It was only a matter of time before she woke up entirely. 

He grabbed the phone and hit the green icon on the screen. 

“What do you want?” he said, unaware of who was on the other end of the call. At that moment, he didn’t care who they were. 

“Now, now Donnie. Is that any way to talk to the love of you life?”

“You can’t be calling me,” he whispered into the phone. “You’re not even supposed to have this number. I was asleep. In bed. With my wife.” He snarled as he shortened his sentences. 

He slowly got out of bed, trying not to disturb Alison any further. He tiptoed out of the bedroom while wearing his tighty whities and a white t-shirt that was at least a size too small. 

“I couldn’t sleep. I kept thinking about you and all the naughty, naughty things we are going to do together. It’s got my motor running so hard, I had to call you. I had try and have you come and satisfy me.” 

"I don't care if you're on fire and covered in wasps. Don’t ever call me at my house. Don’t ever call me in the middle of the night.” Donnie was losing his cool. He couldn’t figure out how else to tell this woman to leave him alone. He just wanted her to realize that he wasn’t interested in her that way. He wanted her to understand that he made a mistake and wanted to put it behind him. 

She wasn’t willing to listen to anything that wasn’t him saying “yes.” 

“Leave me the hell alone, Rebecca,” he said, pressing the red disconnect button. 

Unbeknownst to Donnie, Alison had gotten out of bed and followed him towards the living room where he was pacing. She stood halfway down the stairs, listening to the conversation. She wasn’t trying to be nosy. At least, not at the start. 

She just wanted to know who was calling at this ungodly hour so she could give them a piece of her mind. 

Then she heard the name Rebecca and her mind began to race. Maybe it wasn’t Beth they should be looking into. 

She wanted to call Cosima right then and there to tell her the news. But she knew she’d have to wait until morning. Alison wouldn’t be able to sleep for the rest of the night. She knew it as her mind and her heart raced. 

Donnie began making his way back towards the bedroom. 

Alison scurried back to the bedroom and climbed into bed mere seconds before Donnie opened the door. She feigned sleeping as Donnie put his phone down on the nightstand and joined her in bed. 

He laid there for a few minutes, thinking. Within 30 minutes, he was asleep. After 45 minutes of being in bed, he was snoring soundly.

Alison slipped out of bed, carefully taking her cell phone from the nightstand. She stealthily made her way out of the bedroom and down the stairs. She went into the kitchen where she sent Cosima a simple text.

Donnie & Rebecca. Not Beth. 

She wasn’t sure when Cosima would receive the message, as it was after 3 am now. Since Alison knew she was up for the night, she began making herself a small breakfast and some coffee. 

Two sugars, with extra cream. 

She also made herself some scrambled eggs, toast with strawberry jelly, and two strips of bacon. 

She ate standing at the center island of her kitchen before cleaning up the dishes and countertops. When she’d finished all of that, she’d only been out of bed for 45 minutes. The kids wouldn’t be up for just over two-and-a-half hours. Donnie wouldn’t be up for another two hours. 

Alison had some free time available, but she couldn’t relax. Her mind kept thinking about the ring and how Donnie had straight up lied to her. 

She was stewing over everything while working on some crafting projects for the kids when her phone began to ring.

“Hello Cosima,” she said, sounding as if she did not have a care in the world. 

“Hey, Alison, sorry, I should have sent a text first to make sure you were up. I took a guess you’d still be up after sending that message.” 

“I’m awake. You are quite okay calling me tonight.”

“Cool. So, yeah, I did some searches. There’s one that sort of makes sense when you swap out Beth for Donnie.

“Apparently there was a girl you and Donnie went to college with named Rebecca Clearhouse, but she changed her name to Lovewater after she became a professional rescue diver. Like those people that work with the cops to find guns and bodies in rivers, lakes, etc. Pretty cool stuff.” 

“You’re saying that the woman whose name is on this ring went to college with us? And she changed her name after we graduated, meaning that Donnie has been in contact with her for some stretch since then?”

Alison had to sit down thinking about what that really meant. 

“Looks that way. She still lives in the area. About six miles away from your house. She’s currently employed by the City of Toronto to help with police investigations, car accidents, etc. Pretty lucrative work based on her bank accounts.”

“You hacked her accounts?” Alison said with concern.

“No. Goddess, no. Account balances are available to law enforcement for investigative purposes. I just pulled those records.” 

Alison breathed a sigh of relief. 

“So what are you going to do, Alison? Are you going to confront Donnie?”

“I don’t know yet. Thanks for the information, Cosima.” 

“Yeah, sure, no problem. Have a good one,” she said before hanging up the phone. 

Alison sat in her chair, with only one thought going through her mind.

You’re a dead man, Donnie Hendrix. 

** Lyrics courtesy of Lyrics Mania. http://www.lyricsmania.com/apache_jump_on_it_lyrics_sugar_hill_gang.html


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning: Violence against women.

Helena was roused from her sleep by the sound of someone vigorously banging on the door. She quickly tossed on a pair of pants before grabbing her handgun. She held it in her hand. She could feel the coldness of the metal through the rubberized plastic grip.

She slowly walked over to the door. The guess kept banging and banging, but did not say anything.

Helena remained silent as well. Until she knew who was on the other side of the door, remaining invisible was her best option.

"Open up, Helena. I commandeth thee."

Thomas. 

Helena didn't relax her grip on the gun as she opened the door. "Hello, Thomas," she said in a thick Ukrainian accent. 

"Hello, my child," he said, making himself feel at home. He removed his black leather gloves as he looked around the small cove of solitude Helena had built.

He looked over the photos from magazines she'd hung on the wall. 

"Quite a fantasy you've concocted. A fantasy built of lies and sin. An unholy world of sex and materialism." He ran his finger over the chest and abs of the topless cowboy. “A sinful, sinful world.”

He turned his gaze towards her. “I am hoping these images of filth and sin were here when you got here. I would hate for my disciple to be falling for these graven images.”

Helena didn’t say a word. She just stood there, looking at Thomas. 

He slapped her across the face, striking her right cheek. He backhanded her face, landing his knuckles on her left cheek. 

Blood dripped from Helena’s lip. Still she stood stoically. 

“I don’t like people keeping secrets from me. I don’t like people disrespecting me. This place is both of those.”

He struck her again. This time, her nose felt the impact as well. A trickle of crimson fell, landing on her top lip and disappearing into the gathered blood. 

“I give you everything. I save you from the fires of hell. I provide you with a way to cleanse this world of the unholy abominations so you can finally be free, and this is how you repay me. Secret lairs. Photos from lustful magazines. If I hadn’t had you followed, I would never have know of this place.”

He grabbed her face in his hand, squeezing it tightly in his hand. Her teeth hurt from the force of his hand on her jaw. Her cheeks were forced inward, leaving her mouth in perpetual fish face. Blood spilled out of her mouth and ran down her chin. Drips of it landed on the concrete below, which eagerly soaked it up. 

“On top of your sinful nature, I hear that you had the opportunity to finally kill that abomination walking the planet, yet you let her go. You were sloppy and slow. You failed. Failure, will not be tolerated.”

His hand tightened as he spoke. On his last syllable, he shoved her face away as he released her. He turned his back to her as she stood there, bleeding and looking at him. She made no attempt to defend herself nor to tend to her wounds. 

Helena was a good soldier. That’s the only reason Thomas kept her alive for so long. 

“Disobey me again, and next time, you won’t be so lucky.” 

Thomas made his way out of the small room and slammed the door behind him. 

Helena spit on the floor, leaving a huge pool of blood. She wiped her nose and mouth with the back of her hand, which left her hand coated in a sticky layer of blood. She shook with rage and disappointment. 

It wasn’t the first time that Thomas had roughed her up a bit for failing him. She’d spent days locked in a dog cage where she was starved and burned with cigarettes. She’d had her arm broken by a crowbar. She’d had her nose broken by a frying pan. 

She had no love for Thomas. There was no respect. There was fear and blind loyalty. She owed him her life. He was the only person who ever gave her any kindness in the forms of food and shelter. She felt she had to obey or he would take it all away from her.

Permanently. 

She steadied her hands as she carefully removed her photos. She rounded up all of her belongings from this burrow. Thomas knew where she was. Somehow, she had been sloppy. Despite his warnings, she knew she couldn’t stay here. This was his place now. 

She knew she needed to find a new place to live. A place away from Thomas’s grasp. Somewhere that he would never find her. 

She also knew that the next time she encountered Thomas, if he dared to touch her, she would end up. There was no way that she would ever let him make contact with her again. She would not be his whipping girl. 

She knew she did not deserve that. She knew that at this point, it was him or her. And she was choosing herself. 

For once in her life, she was putting herself first. She wasn’t going to let Thomas control her or treat her like a dog. She was a strong and fierce warrior. Even the strongest, fiercest, bravest warriors had to strike back against their masters. 

It was Helena’s turn to rise up and take charge, or die trying. 

With a new determination, she tossed everything into a plain black backpack. She disassembled her rifle, putting each of the individual pieces into her bag one at a time. She took everything from the room, except the mattress. Mattresses were easy to find. They would often turn up near dumpsters, particularly near apartment buildings. 

She grabbed her backpack, zipped up her jacket, tossed on her helmet, and walked out the door for the last time. 

She hopped on her bike and fired it up. She slowly started taking off from the abandoned warehouse, making her way towards the city. She knew exactly where she was going to go. 

She was going back to Beth Childs’ house to make an offer for a new home that Sarah Manning couldn’t refuse.


	12. Chapter 12

"The ring is connected to Donnie? Why? How?" Sarah asked.

"I don't know yet. Apparently Donnie and I went to college with this woman but I don't remember her at all," Alison said on the other end of the phone call. 

"That's crazy. Have you mentioned it to Donnie yet?"

"Not yet. I wanted some more information before I spook him. He's a terrible liar, but he completely shuts down when things get tough. If I bring this up, he'll just get nervous and tell me more ridiculous lies."

Sarah looked around Beth's house as the spoke. She scanned every one of the visible surfaces, of which there were few. 

"Any luck finding anything else to help you pretend to be Beth longer?" Alison asked. 

"Not yet. This place is too clean. There's nothing here really. It feels like a vacation home more than a primary residence. Unless there's a secret room somewhere, there just isn't much to go off of."

"Did you look in the basement?"

"Don't be silly, Alison. There's no basement."

"Okay, maybe not a basement, but there is an underground panic room that is a pretty decent size."

"Where? How?"

"There is supposedly a hatch hidden on the floor of the hall closet. She had it installed while Paul was out of town in case of an emergency. At least, that's what she told me."

"Why would she build something like that?" Sarah asked.

"She began growing paranoid that someone was out to get her. She had dreams of doctors coming in the night, performing tests on her. Real creepy X-Files type stuff. Scared her real badly."

Sarah shook her head. "That's insane. What could drive someone to become so paranoid?"

"Being a clone. I have to run. The kids will be home soon." 

"Yeah. See ya," Sarah said as she hung up the phone. She tucked the phone into her back pocket.

She walked to the hall closet and swung open the door. She looked down at the closet floor. Three pairs of running shoes, a gym bag full of toiletries, and an umbrella. If there was a handle or a latch residing on the floor of the closet, she couldn’t see it from where she was standing. 

She kneeled down to get a closer look only to hear a loud snapping and cracking sound. 

Sarah’s cell phone screen shattered into pieces. The plastic case broke along the edges. Her phone was dead. 

“Damn it,” she said, looking at the broken remains. She knew she’d have to reach out to Cosima for a new clone phone. 

But that would have to wait until she was finished looking for this secret room. 

She removed all of the items from the closet floor and began looking around for a switch, latch, handle, or anything that would open up a panic room. She ran her fingers along the floor to feel for anything out of the ordinary. 

Nothing. 

She sat up from her hands and knees, stretching a little. As she stretched, she looked up towards the round metal bar running along the closet. Two snow coats, a windbreaker, a raincoat, and a black cardigan hung along the bar. The bar had three supports connected to it. 

There were four supports connected to the wall. 

Sarah stood up and reached out towards that fourth bar support on the wall. Her finger grazed the aluminum curl. It gave, more than she anticipated. It began sliding into the wall.

She pressed it fully. The closet floor began sliding from right to left, exposing a ladder descending into darkness. She wrapped her finger around the support and pulled it out from the wall. 

The floor slid back into place. 

“That’s cool,” Sarah whispered. The sound of her own voice echoed throughout the closet. She pushed the support back into the wall, exposing the secret room. 

She stepped into the closet and began going down the ladder. As she moved, motion detectors along the ladder turned on the fluorescent lights, cascading the room in brilliant white light. When she reached the bottom of the ladder, she began looking around at the secret room. 

It was bigger than she expected. It was a third the size of the entire first story of the house above. A white button was on the wall next to the ladder. Sarah pressed it. 

The secret hatch slid shut. 

“That’s too cool,” Sarah said as she watched it close. 

She walked around the room. The first thing she noticed was how empty the room was. Just like the above, it was a minimalists dream. A single chair. A small cabinet affixed to the wall filled with dry and canned goods. A metal baker’s rack filled with suitcases of water. A small bathroom with a sink, stand up shower, and a toilet. A microwave and a sink with a small countertop. A television set tapped into the cable line of the neighbors house. Three electrical sockets pulling power from next door. 

Then Sarah found what she was looking for. A black foot locker with a combination padlock tucked in the corner between the countertop and the wall. 

She pulled the foot locker into the center of the room and peered at the combination lock. She tried a few four-digit numbers that she thought Beth might have used.

She tried the address. She tried the phone number. She tried the last four of Beth’s social security number. She tried Beth’s birthday.

None worked. The trunk remained locked shut. 

Sarah decided she would get a pair of bolt cutters and remove the padlock. It would be easier than trying to crack the combination. 

She made her way back up the ladder, closing the secret door and returning all of the items to the closet. 

She had just finished when she heard the doorbell ring. Instantly, Sarah was on high alert. She was not expecting company, but she wasn’t armed either. 

Sarah slowly made her way towards the front door where she could see the shadowy outline of someone at the door. 

Sarah moved too slowly. The figure rang the doorbell three more times then began banging on the front door. 

She didn’t say anything as she moved. She knew the figure could see her shadow through the door too, which didn’t help calm her nerves. 

She reached out with a shaky hand and touched the deadbolt. It clicked as she unlocked it. She slid her hand down a few inches to the doorknob. A quick flick of her thumb unlocked it. She turned and slowly pulled back, opening the door. 

As the door opened, the shadowy figure was clear as day. 

Helena.

She stood there with her backpack on the ground and her bike helmet in her hand. She smiled awkwardly as the door opened. 

“Hello Sarah Manning.”


	13. Chapter 13

“You,” Sarah said in shock. The face of the woman who tried to kill her was the last thing Sarah expected to find at the door. Even with her senses on high alert, her brain did not imagine her attempted killer to be standing there. “Go away or I’ll kill you. I’ll do it. I won’t hesitate to defend myself.” 

“I am not here to harm you,” Helena said. “I have no where else to go.” 

She raised her head and showed Sarah her black eye and swollen lip from her encounter with Thomas. 

“You tried to kill me. Why would I ever believe that you’re not here to hurt me? And what makes you think that I would ever help you?”

Helena looked at Sarah in the eyes. “You have no reason to trust me. I know this. But I’m asking for a chance. I lost my home. I lost my freedom. I lost my family.” A single tear began rolling down her cheek. “I have no where else to go. I have no where else to turn.” 

Sarah began to feel her guard coming down. She began to remember how hard it was when she lost everything in her life because of mistakes she made in her past. Helena’s face being the same as Sarah’s made it difficult not to feel bad for Helena. 

Even with her guard falling, Sarah kept her eyes on Helena, questioning her motives. 

“What’s your name?” she asked. 

“Helena. You are Sarah Manning.” 

“Yeah, I’m Sarah. Why were you trying to kill me?” 

“Thomas told me you are an abomination. He says you are not human. You are not worthy of living. And I believed him. He raised me. He fed me. He told me lies about being family. Then when I begin to live, he comes to crush me under foot again. 

“No more. No more.” 

Helena broke down into tears. They fell down her cheeks and on to the porch. Each tear washed away the dirt and grime that had built up on her face. She dropped to her knees and balled her eyes out. 

Sarah caved. The sight of another clone weeping so heavily defeated rational thought. 

“Alright, come inside. Get yourself something to eat. Take a shower. The we’ll talk. You can leave your bag of weapons down here with me,” she said, looking at Helena’s backpack. 

“And if you try anything, anything at all, I will end you in a heartbeat. No hesitation. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes Sarah Manning. Thank you for showing kindness. You are a good person with a good heart.” 

Helena walked into the house, wiping her eyes with her sleeves. 

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t make me regret this,” Sarah said, taking Helena’s backpack from her. Helena handed it over without hesitation or resistance. 

“I will not make you regret this.” Helena dove into the kitchen, helping herself to every bit of food she could reach. Cans of vegetables mixed with boxes of crackers, condiments poured into a bowl with cheese and sandwich meat. Microwave dinners eaten without heating. An entire loaf of bread covered in butter and mustard. 

The woman was ravenous for food. This was like a smorgasbord to her. An all you can eat buffet for the starving. 

“Jesus, Helena, slow down. The food will be there later. We can always go buy more.” 

Helena spoke with her mouth full. Bit of food flew as she spoke. “I have never bought food. I went to grocery store once, but got caught stealing and ran very fast away.” 

“No worries. I’ve got money.” 

“Thomas never let me have money. He said money led to sinful lives.” 

Sarah scowled. “Didn’t Thomas have money to get your food or weapons?” 

“He said that God provided all things for us.” 

“I’m willing to bet his God is the same ones they worship on Wall Street.” 

“What is this, Wall Street?” Helena said, crunching into a package of ramen noodles without cooking them. 

“Wall Street. You know, it’s where all those rich banker bastards live and work. They make billions of dollars by stealing it from the poor and those looking for a better future.”

“This sounds like Thomas. He uses people. He used me. He gets his way and makes you feel good for a moment, then he strike you for disappointing him in ways he never says.” 

“Sounds like most men I’ve met. At least, most straight men.” Sarah pulled her broken cell phone out of her pocket and placed it on the counter. 

“What happen to phone?” Helena asked. 

“It broken when I was doing some cleaning. Forgot it was in my pocket. Bent down to pick up some laundry, and it snapped on me.” 

“Was a nice phone.” 

“Yeah, it was. Now I need a new one,” she said, turning her back on Helena. 

Helena rose up from her seat and took two steps towards Sarah. She was going to lunge at her, tackle her to the ground, and begin to choke Sarah with Sarah’s own shirt. 

But then, she had a realization. Sarah was nice to her. Even after their encounter. Even after being impaled. Even after Helena tried to kill Sarah, Sarah still showed kindness. 

No one had ever done that. 

Genuine kindness towards her. And it resonated. 

Helena took a new seat and continued to shovel food into her face. 

“Shower is upstairs if you want to use it,” Sarah said, wheeling around to find Helena sitting in a new chair. 

“Thank you. I will shower when I am full.” 

“Looks like that won’t be for a while,” Sarah said over the sound of the doorbell ringing. She turned to look at Helena, who was already standing with wide eyes. “You stay here. I’ll get it.” 

Sarah walked over to the unlocked front door and quickly opened the door. 

“Come on in, Felix,” she said, turning away from the door and returning to the kitchen. 

“Nice to see you too,” he said. 

He followed Sarah into the kitchen. He found the place in complete disarray. Bits of different food types all over the floor and the countertop. The cabinet doors all wide open. The fridge was covered in fingerprints from various sauces and condiments. 

What he didn’t find was Helena. 

“What the bloody hell happened in here?” he asked. 

“Looks like we’ll be having company for a bit,” Sarah said. 

“What? A stray dog with thumbs?”

“Close. It’s that woman who tried to kill me. She’s a clone and her name is Helena.”

“The woman who tried to kill you is here, right now?” Felix said, cutting Sarah off. “As in, there’s a potential killer loose in this house, right this minute, and you’re showing me a kitchen nightmare? Are you insane?” 

“I don’t know Felix. You weren’t there. You didn’t see her crying. My face on another person. I don’t know what’s going on with us being clones. I don’t know how many there are out there, but she makes five that I know of. How many more of us are there out there? I have to know. I have to.”

Felix shook his head. “You wouldn’t catch me feeding my potential killer, I’ll tell you that.” He walked around the countertop island and noticed the broken phone. “What happened to this?”

“Broke it when I found something. I’ll tell you later, just in case you’re right. What are you doing here anyway?” 

“You called me. Told me to come over this afternoon. Said you wanted to talk about something. So, here I am. What did you want to talk about?”

Sarah’s mind went blank. “Jesus, Felix, I don’t even remember. Between talking with Alison, meeting Helena, and what I found, I honestly don’t remember why I wanted you over here.”

“Did you find out anything more about that ring?”

“Yes, that’s what it was. The ring,” she said as the lightbulb went off. “It’s not Beth’s. It’s not connected to her. It’s connected to Donnie.”

“Donnie? Why would Beth have a ring connected to Donnie?” 

Sarah shook her head. “I don’t know, but I’m willing to bet that Alison will get to the bottom of it.” 

“Hello,” Helena said, coming down the stairs in a Nirvana t-shirt, skinny jeans, and her hair hanging damply. “You are very cute man. Like model from pride poster.” 

“Helena, this is my brother, Felix,” Sarah said.   
“Hello Felix,” Helena said. 

Felix blushed at being called a model. He managed only to reply with one word. “Hey.” 

“We are all roommates now, yes?”

Sarah nodded. “Roommates.” 

Helena began dancing happily where she stood. 

Felix shook his head. “You’re insane.” 

“And you still love me,” she said with a smile as she joined in the dance.


	14. Chapter 14

Donnie grabbed a handful of antacids from the container on his nightstand. He was up to six a night before bed. Another four halfway through the night. Four more tablets in the morning. He was going through a bottle every day. Over 100 antacids in a single day can cause serious digestive problems.

Problems Donnie was wrestling with as Rebecca wouldn’t leave him alone. She demanded all of his free time. She was texting him constantly. She emailed him at home and at work. She would call him at work, pretending to be a customer. 

He couldn’t sleep. He couldn’t eat. He couldn’t relax. He was a ball of nerves that could explode at any moment. 

Add Alison snooping around his life and it was a surprise Donnie could function at all. He had already caught her rummaging through the garage looking for the box he burned. Now she was asking him questions about college. She’s asking him about courses he took without her. She’s asking him about all sorts of people, including Rebecca Clearhouse nee. Lovewater. 

He wanted it to end. He wanted to go back to his previous life. He wanted all of this to have never happened, but he knew that wasn’t possible. Something would have to give. Either he’d die from all the stress or he’s have to come clean to Alison and risk losing the only woman he truly loved. 

He had already been confronted by Alison when he came home from work. She grilled him until she grew bored of the exercise. He tried his best to not cave right then and there. In his mind, he was saving Alison, but really, he was saving his own skin. 

He grabbed another handful of antacids, chewing on them until his mouth was chalky and dry. He swallowed, leaving a thin layer of grit on his teeth and his tongue. It would be a few minutes before his saliva glands began working properly again. 

He took a deep breath and held it. His hands began to shake as he played over the entire situation in his head again. 

The time had come. He had to tell Alison everything. He had to be honest with her, for the sake of his gastrointestinal tract. 

He walked out of the bedroom and down the stairs. He rounded the bend and went down towards the crafts room where Alison was working on costumes for Halloween. He could see her through the crack in the door, sewing away on her Singer. Bits of fabric were flung across the room. Every surface had something costume related taking up residence upon it. 

He slowly opened the door a bit wider and poked his head through. He waited for Alison to finish the run she was on with the Singer before he said anything. 

“Ali, honey, is now a bad time? I was hoping to talk to you about something.” 

“Come in and talk. There’s only three months until Halloween and these costumes aren’t going to make themselves.” She fired up the Singer again, going on another run as she finished connected two pieces of shimmering pink fabric over a solid piece of fabric. She had a lacy bit of pink fabric to go over both pieces once this part was finished. 

“Okay,” he said, walking into the room. He found a spot where he could move a piece of blue coarse fabric over enough for him to half-sit and half-stand. “Now, this isn’t going to be easy to say, and I know you’re going to be upset, but I do want to remind you that the kids are upstairs sleeping.” 

“Thank you,” she said sarcastically. “I was worried for a second that I was a bad mother and left the kids at the dry cleaners instead of my white blouse. That’s a huge relief.” 

She rolled her eyes as the icing on the cake. 

Donnie took a deep breath, trying to put her sarcasm behind him. “Well, this is actually important so I would like you to at least pay attention to me.” 

“I’m listening, Donnie. What’s so important that you have to talk about it right now?” 

“Yes, right, well, Ali, honey, you know that I love you, right?” 

“Yes. I know that because you married me. I’m still here because I know that. Just because I don’t say it does not mean I don’t feel that way too, Donnie.” 

“Hold that thought,” he said with a nervous laugh. “Because you may not feel that way in a few minutes.”

“What are you talking about,” she said, turning away from her sewing machine to face him. 

“So, that ring you found. It kinda, sorta belongs to me. Well, not me. Rebecca. She gave it to me to hold on to for her. It’s a long story.” He was sweating profusely as he spoke. Within this short amount of time, beads of sweat were falling from his nose. His shirt had sweat marks on his back and in his pits. 

“Luckily for you, I have nothing but time. Now, let’s start at the beginning where you lied to me and go from there.” Her eyes were not those of a loving supportive wife. Her eyes were those of someone in doubt, judging and examining someone. These were the eyes that could reduce an individual into nothing more than a series of atoms with one glance. 

Donnie began to laugh nervously. Added to the sweating and he was a miserable soul. With Alison staring a hole into him, he wished he was dead. 

He wasn’t entirely sure he wouldn’t be by the time he finished his story. 

He started at the start, telling Alison everything. He told her about meeting Rebecca in college and about their sexual relationship. He told her about the ring. He told her about Rebecca stalking him and tormenting him. 

He told her everything, coming completely clean. 

For her part, Alison sat in the chair, listening. She was emotional. She was upset. She fought back tears. She did not cry nor did she interrupt him. Alison remained strong because that’s what she does. She stays strong in the face of adversity. 

“So that’s the story. I don’t know what to do, Ali. I don’t know what to do,” he said, finishing his tale. As soon as the last bit left his lips, he broke down crying. He sobbed from his heart, from his very soul. Large tears moved with such rapidness they were almost invisible to the naked eye. His body shook as he whimpered and tried to maintain his breath. 

“Well, Donnie,” she said, tears in the corners of her eyes. “That’s quite a story.” Her voice quivered and threatened to break with every word. “It’s safe to say that I’m very disappointed in you for all of this. You should have told me that the mean woman was harassing you.”

“I should have?” he said between sobs.

“Yes, Donnie, you should have. I’m livid at you for cheating on me for all these years. And we’ll address that in time. Right now, we need this woman to leave you alone. She needs to realize that it’s over.” 

Donnie nodded.

“Fortunately for you, I’m very good at getting messages across to stubborn people.”

“You’re not going to hurt her, are you?”

She shook her head. “No, I’m not going to hurt her. At least, that’s not the plan. I won’t take it off the table, but I think it’s time I had a chat with this woman. Just a little woman-to-woman, face to face. A conversation about a guy.” 

A grin spread across her face. She rubbed her hands together in front of eyes before standing up. She began to leave the craft room without finishing the costumes. 

She turned to look at the sopping wet mess that used to be Donnie Hendrix. “Oh, and Donnie. You should be prepared to start your long-term relationship with the couch in the den, effective immediately.” 

She flipped off the light switch leaving him in the craft room.


	15. Chapter 15

“Gosh darn it,” Alison said. “Why won’t Sarah answer her phone?” 

It was the morning after Donnie’s confessional in the crafts room and Alison was already formulating a plan to solve the issue. She needed Sarah’s help, but couldn’t get ahold of her. 

She called Cosima. 

“Hey Alison, I really can’t talk long. I’m driving over to see Sarah. She broke her phone so I’m bringing her a new one.” 

“Actually, you answered my question. I was trying to get in touch with Sarah. Can you tell her to get Felix and come over to my house? I need their help with something.” 

“Yeah, sure, no problem. But I gotta go, so I’ll check you out later. Cool?”

“That’s fine. Thank you.” 

Cosima was already gone before Alison could finish. “I hate when she does that,” she muttered. 

Donnie was still on the couch, trying to sleep. He was up and down all night, alternating between crying and vomiting. Alison was just thankful that he made it to the bathroom in time every time. 

She began doing all of the household chores while Donnie rested. She did as much as she could without disturbing him too much. She needed him to rest up and get his strength because she needed him for her plan to work. 

An hour into her routine, her phone rang with an unfamiliar number. “Hello?” 

“Alison, it’s Sarah. My new phone. Smashed the last one unfortunately. Cosima told me you wanted me to call. What’s up?” 

“Donnie came clean about the ring last night. He’s being stalked by that Rebecca woman. I need your help to stop her from bothering Donnie any more. Can you and Felix be at my house later?”

“Yeah, sure, we can come over. There’s just one small thing.”

“What’s that?” Alison asked. 

“Helena will be with us. She’s another clone.”

“Another one? Well, she’s family now.”

“She’s the one who tried to kill me, Alison, so we can’t be quite as accepting right away. There’s a trust issue.” 

“You’re bringing over the person that tried to kill you? Are you insane?”

“That’s what Felix asked too. No, I’m not insane. She’s just like us. She’s been led astray. I think that we can bring her around and help her out. Besides, I can’t leave her here alone.” 

“Okay. I’ll see you this afternoon.”

“Yeah, we’ll be there. Oh, and thanks for the tip on that secret room. I found a foot locker. I haven’t been able to open it yet, but Felix is taking Helena out soon. He brought over some bolt cutters, so I’ll find out what’s in there soon.”

“I’m glad I could help. I hope there’s something useful in there for you, Sarah.”

“Yeah, thanks. I’m going to go. I’ll see you soon.” 

Sarah hung up the new phone and put it down on the counter. Felix was upstairs with Helena, helping her get ready to go out. He was taking her out to eat at a cafe, then to the grocery store, then clothes shopping. They would be back before four in the afternoon. It was only nine in the morning.

Plenty of time for Sarah to explore the contents of the trunk. She could hear them coming down the stairs. 

“I’m going to take Beth’s car, is that alright?” Felix asked. 

“Yeah, that’s fine. Just be back before four. We have to go see Alison at her place. She needs our help with that ring situation.” 

“Ring ring,” Helena said with a giggle. 

“No worries, sis. Come along, From Russia with Love. Let’s get our shopping on.” 

“I’m from Ukraine. Not Russia. Russia and Ukraine are not friends.” 

“Apologies. Come along, Ukrainian.” 

“Is better,” she said with a smile. 

The two left the house through the garage. Sarah waited nearby until she heard the car pull out and the garage door close. One she was sure they had left, she made a beeline towards the front closet and the secret room. 

She moved all of the items out of the closet, pulled the support down, and climbed down the ladder. She found the foot locker exactly where she left it yesterday. She used the bolt cutters and cut off the combination lock. 

She ripped off the bits of cut metal, turned the catch, and opened the latch. She swung open the top of the trunk exposing the contents within. 

The first thing Sarah found was a group of folders. Each folder had a different name on it. She found on labeled Alison Hendrix and one labeled Cosima Niehaus. 

Beth had secret files on the clones. More information than the passport photos and birth certificates Sarah had found upstairs during her first search of the home. 

Sarah put the folders to the side, delving deeper into the trunk. 

She found a box of jewelry that was at least thirty years old. She found a pair of baby shoes and a binder full of childhood photos of Beth growing up. She also found a t-shirt with a blood stain on it, just below where the heart would be. There wasn’t a tear or a hole in the shirt where the blood was, meaning the shirt was worn after the injury occurred. 

With how the shirt was being stored, the odds of the DNA being intact were slim. Why Beth had kept it was beyond Sarah, but it must have some meaning to be kept in this trunk. 

Sarah grabbed the folders and the childhood pictures. She tucked the bolt cutters into her pants. She checked to make sure she had everything before climbing back up the ladder one-handed. She closed the hatch and emerged from the closet. 

After putting everything back where it belonged, she placed the photo album on the top shelf of the closet. For now, she would focus on the files. 

She looked through each folder, one-by-one. A dozen names, a dozen folders. Each contained the same information Sarah found before. Photos. Birth certificates. Passports. Drivers licenses. Newspaper clippings. Criminal records. Adoption records. 

Nothing that Sarah hadn’t seen already. She was disappointed when she realized these folders were just backup copies of the ones she’d already discovered. 

She decided to take them back down into the panic room the next time she went down. In the meantime, she tucked the folders beneath a pile of sweaters on the top shelf of the closet. 

Sarah looked through the photo album next. There were photos of Beth as a young girl going to school and playing in the yard. There were photos from camps and birthday parties. There were photos of Beth and her parents. 

There were nearly a hundred photos from Beth’s past, but not much that could help Sarah become Beth. It would just be enough to help create a backstory, which may be of some us, but wouldn’t fool everyone for long. 

It was just another disappointing development from the entire situation. The closer Sarah thought she was to finding an answer, the further away she felt.


	16. Chapter 16

"And you're sure you understand the plan," Alison asked as she adjusted Donnie's tie.

"I've got it," he said. He was sweating profusely. So profusely that he had already changed shirts three times and put on a third of a stick of deodorant.

"Relax Alison. I'm sure he can handle it," Sarah said. She was sitting on the couch with Felix. 

"Does that woman do anything but eat?" Alison asked, looking towards Helena in the kitchen.

"Three hundred bucks on groceries in the last two days and she's eaten everything. She's a bottomless pit this one," Felix said. "Just be glad you didn't have to take her out to a restaurant. People were staring at her something fierce. No table manners at all."

Helena looked up from the table and stared at Felix. She was holding an entire rotisserie chicken in her hands. 

"This has to go exactly as planned for it to work. Does everyone know what they are supposed to do?"

"Yes," came the chorus. 

"I'm just checking. Goodness you people will be the death of me. Now, lets head out and put the plan in motion." Alison called her hands twice and the group began to move. 

Felix took Helena by the arm and walked her away from the kitchen, chicken still in her hands. "I take with," she said as she shoved her face on to the bird. 

They all walked out front. Donnie hopped into his black sedan. Alison and Sarah rode in the mini van. Felix and Helena followed in Beth's car. 

The three vehicles arrived at a restaurant just in the suburbs called La Petit Pomme. It was an upscale French restaurant with reasonable prices. They parked in three different lots to ensure no one saw them together. 

Donnie parked closest to the restaurant and waited out front for Rebecca to show up. Felix was parked the next closest, two lots down. Alison parked across the street in the lot for a boutique pet groomer. 

Felix made his way to the back entrance of the restaurant. The door was propped open by a brick. A man in a white coat stood next to it, smoking.

“Oy, Mate. Can I get one off you?” Felix said, strolling up casually.

“Do I know you?” the man replied. His eyes moved from Felix’s black hair to his black polished shoes. “You don’t look familiar to me, boy-o.”

“Second day. Still meeting all the people. Nice place. Wish to hell the customers weren’t all know-it-all arses, am I right.” He slapped his thigh with the palm of his hand as he faked a laugh. 

“You’re right. You’re damn sure right,” the man replied. He held out the package of cigarettes towards Felix. Felix took a cigarette and lit it with his own lighter. 

“You’re not there to be friends, you’re there to wait for Donnie’s signal,” Alison said. Her voice came through loud and clear via an earpiece receiver Sarah had liberated from the police station. Each of them, including Helena, had an earpiece and a microphone that was virtually undetectable to the naked eye if worn properly. 

Out front, Donnie could see Rebecca walking towards the front door of the restaurant. She was wearing a blue dress with a white belt, white shoes, and a white sweater. She carried a blue and white checker bag to complete the look. Her long red hair was worn down. 

It curled just as it struck her shoulders. 

She looked like a supermodel. 

“Hello Donnie,” she said. The smile on her face could be heard by all the listeners. Alison began grinding her teeth as she heard Rebecca's voice come over the receiver.

"Hey. You look splendiferous."

"Splendiferous? A hundred different words for 'smoking hot' and you go with splendiferous? Goodness you're adorable," she replied. She leaned in and lightly kissed his cheek. She pulled her lips away leaving no trace of her lipstick behind.

"Are you ready?" He asked as his face turned the color of an apple. 

"I'm starving," she said and she locked her arm around his. 

The two walked into the restaurant and were quickly seated at a table near the kitchen. This was perfectly according to Alison's plan.

Donnie tried to keep the conversation light and lively. Rebecca wanted to pretend none of the unpleasantness of Donnie trying to end it with her had ever happened. The two laughed while drinking wine and dining on steak au poivre. 

Alison tried to fight her natural instinct to run into the restaurant and punch Rebecca in the face. 

Rebecca moved her chair around the table so she could be closer to Donnie. Her back was now turned towards the kitchen as well. 

Her hand was placed on Donnie’s thigh. 

“Man, I could really use a refill. Where’s the garcon? Oh garcon,” Donnie said. His French accent sounding more like Slowpoke from the old Warner Brothers cartoons. 

Felix nodded as he pulled out a bottle of wine from his backpack, stashed in the back of the restaurant. He walked through the kitchen without anyone saying a word to him. 

He approached the table and pour Rebecca a glass of wine from the bottle. He continued to walk around the dining room with the bottle, but didn’t pour anyone else a glass. Once his charade walk was complete, Felix disappeared into the kitchen, grabbed his backpack, and raced back to the car where Helena was waiting. 

Or rather, where Helena was supposed to be waiting. 

The car was empty. 

Helena had taken off with her backpack, along with five-hundred dollars Sarah kept in the glove box in case of emergency. 

“Helena’s gone. She split with the cash from the box. She has her backpack with her, but she’s gone.” He stamped his foot in frustration. 

“Let her go, Fe. She’ll show up again. I’ll bet my life on in. Right now, let’s stick to the plan to save Donnie,” Sarah said. She was trying to convince herself just as much as she was Felix.


	17. Chapter 17

“I think we should get you home,” Donnie said as Rebecca could barely keep her head up. She had finished the entire glass of wine which was spiked with a combination of drug that Felix claimed would “make her see pink elephants doing heroin with Elvis.” 

“Hu’orkay,” she said. Her speech was slurred. Drool ran from her mouth and hung from her chin. 

Donnie paid the check and helped Rebecca out of the restaurant by throwing her arm around his shoulder and carrying her out. They rounded the building and made their way into the parking lot. Donnie helped put Rebecca into his sedan, closing the door once she was buckled up. 

“Hello Rebecca,” Alison said from the driver’s seat. 

“Doo I knoooo yooooo?” she asked, confused. 

“I’m Alison Hendrix. I’m Donnie’s wife. And today, I’m going to guarantee that you leave my husband alone, once and for all.” She reached into her pink puffy vest and pulled out a Beretta 9mm pistol. She pointed it at Rebecca’s head. 

Rebecca didn’t seem to register that it was a gun. She held her hand up to pet it, as if she saw it as a puppy instead. 

There was a knock on the window. Rebecca slowly turned her head to find Alison standing there in the same pink vest, holding another gun at the glass. 

Only this time, it was Sarah dressed up as Alison. 

“Like I said,” the real Alison said, “you’re going to leave Donnie alone. Or I’m going to end you.” 

“Toooooooooooooo,” she said. 

“Yeah, there’s two of me,” Sarah said, trying to sound like Alison. “That means I’ll always be available to get to you. There’s no place you can hide.” 

Rebecca ran her hand over Sarah’s gun too. She stroked it over and over again. 

“I don’t think it’s working,” Donnie said from behind the car. He was supposed to be the lookout to make sure everything went according to plan. 

Alison shot him a look through the car. 

Message received. 

“If you call my husband, I’ll track you down. If you visit my husband, I will track you down. If you so much as think about Donnie again, I’ll track you down,” Alison said, glaring into Rebecca’s green and bloodshot eyes. “If you doubt me for a single second, you’ll remember this.”

Alison pulled the trigger. 

Sarah pulled her trigger. 

Both guns went click. They were unloaded, but the sound was enough to scare Rebecca. She began crying and screaming, fighting against the car. She turned to hit Alison, but she was gone. So was Sarah. 

The two casually walked across the parking lot and down the street towards the minivan. A smile on both of their faces. 

Donnie hopped into the car and drove Rebecca to her home. She kicked and screamed the entire way home. Donnie was thankful that he wasn’t stopped by the police at any point during the drive. He was sure he’d have ended up in jail despite having done nothing wrong. 

Once he had finished dropping her off and tucking her into her bed, he called Alison to let her know that Rebecca was home. Then he made his way back to his house. 

When he arrived home, he found Felix, Sarah, and Alison standing around the kitchen, talking happily. His face lit up as he came in the door. 

“You’re still in trouble, buster,” Alison said, pulling away from Donnie’s kiss. “And we’re going to have a conversation, a long conversation, about all the things you’ve done to hurt me and this family.” 

“Yes ma’am,” he said, looking at the floor. He knew this was his fault. He knew that nothing Alison could do to him would ever make things right. He just didn’t know how to end things with Rebecca sooner. “Thank you for your help. Really, I do appreciate it.”

“I didn’t do it for you, Donnie. I did it for our kids. I did it for the family. That’s what adults do. They do difficult things for their family.” 

“Here’s to friendship and love,” Felix said, sensing the vibes getting hostile. He raised his glass up into the air. Sarah and Alison followed. Donnie raised his arm without a drink. He didn’t feel like drinking tonight. 

Night turned into morning. Donnie woke up to the sound of his phone ringing. Alison rolled over to look at him laying on the floor as he answered it. With Sarah and Felix sleeping on the couches, Donnie had no place to go except the floor. 

 

“Hello?”

“Hey. It’s me. I have a pounding headache. I must have had way too much wine last night.”

“You were pretty trashed,” he said, playing along. 

“Well, I feel like I was trashed. I did have the weirdest dream.” 

“Oh?”

“Yeah, I dreamt your wife was going to kill me if I reached out to you in any way. It was so realistic that it made me start thinking that maybe you were right. Maybe we should just end this. You have a family now. We’re not kids anymore. 

“And your wife is a scary woman. At least, in my dreams. But that’s enough. 

“So, I just wanted to tell you that this will be the last time I contact you, Donnie Hendrix. Thanks for the memories.”

The phone went dead before Donnie could reply. 

“It’s over. It’s officially over,” he said, looking at Alison. He began to sob into his hands on the floor. 

Alison moved from her side of the bed down to the floor. She sat beside her husband and rubbed his back. She put aside her own feelings of hurt and betrayal to help her husband feel better during this moment of need. 

That’s what families do, she told herself. That’s what families do. 

Even if they’re a family of clones.


End file.
